Bollywood star Kajol Devgan was forced to issue a 'clarification' after a backlash over a video she posted online showing 'a beef dish' at her friend's restaurant.

The actress shared a clip on Sunday showing her at a 'pop up lunch' organised by friend and chef Ryan Stephen, who described a dish being served as 'beef pepper water with dry lentils and dry beef'.

But Kajol soon removed the Facebook post after she was bombarded with abuse over 'anti religious' sentiments, and then issued a statement on her Twitter saying that the dish was in fact buffalo and not beef.

Kajol Devgan was forced to issue a 'clarification' and deleted the video which caused the backlash

She insisted that the meat in the clip was in fact buffalo, and not beef

Cows are considered sacred in Hindu-majority India, and their slaughter is illegal in most states - Gujarat has recently given the green light to life in prison for anyone who kills cattle for meat. Some states have also banned beef consumption.

During Kajol's video, she says: 'Hi guys, so we're at Ryan's pop up lunch, my very sweet friend Ryan, and we are going to see something that he has made.'

The clip then switches to a meat dish on a table with a sauce being poured over it to loud cheers.

The Bollywood star, 42, posted a clip with her friend Ryan, at his pop up lunch, on Sunday

The dish was described in the video as 'beef pepper water with dry lentils and dry beef'

Turning the camera back on herself, Kajol says: 'Ryan, come here, explain what that was, because everyone wants to know.'

Ryan then states: 'It's beef pepper water with dry lentils and dry beef.'

'We're going to cut his hands off after this,' Kajol then adds.

Opinion was mixed on Twitter over the controversy, with some leaping to Kajol's defence and others berating her

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But after fury erupted, Kajol issued a statement reading: 'A video of me at a friend's lunch said that there was a beef dish at the table. That's a miscommunication.

'What was shown was buffalo meat, that is a legally available meat.

Kajol said that 'hurting religious sentiments' was not her intention

'I'm issuing this clarification because this is a sensitive matter that may hurt religious sentiments, which is not my intention.'

Opinion was divided on Twitter, with some leaping to the actresses support and others criticising her.

In a sarcastic post, Rahul Aggarwal said: 'Was going to post a video of me having some butter, but realised I might hurt the sentiments of vegans.'

Meanwhile Akash Banerkee pointed out that people 'had died' due to beef rumours, hitting back at people who thought it was 'funny' that Kajol issued a clarification.

But Amit Mathur said Kajol deserved 'no respect' because she was 'afraid to admit' what she had eaten.

Cow slaughter is a hot-button issue in India, where even rumours of cows being transported can spark murderous reprisals and religious riots.

Squads of 'cow protection' vigilantes are known to roam highways inspecting livestock trucks for any trace of the animal.

These so-called 'cow protection squads' beat a Muslim man to death on a highway in Rajasthan this month, accusing him of secretly taking cattle to an abattoir for illegal slaughter. The man was a dairy farmer transporting milk cows.

Last week, the government revealed plans to fit the sacred animals with a tamper-proof plastic tag linked to a national database.